Accommodation

Check-in Time:

14:00

Check-out Time:

12:00

You will spend two nights in the executive room at Palago Boutique Hotel in Hanoi, one night in a junior suite cabin on Signature Cruise in Ha Long Bay, three nights in a deluxe city view room at Delicacy Hotel in Hoi An, and two nights in a premier city view room at Northern Charm Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.

Program

Learn to cook Vietnam's delicious cuisine and immerse yourself in the entire journey of exploring the country. You will also discover the fascinating past of the country by visiting the historical sites. Prepare to be amazed by the wonderful nature of Ha Long Bay where you will explore on a cruise. This combination of culinary, nature, history, and culture will truly be a very satisfying trip of a lifetime.

Daily itinerary

Day 1: Hanoi - Arrival (Driver pick-up only)

Upon arrival at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, welcomed by the driver and transferred to downtown, check in your hotel, and be free at leisure. Overnight in Hanoi.

Hotel: four-star Palago Boutique Hotel - executive room
Meal: None

Day 2: Hanoi - Joined cooking class and the city’s highlights

Getting to know the food is also a great way of learning about the country. Vietnamese food is healthy, simple to cook, delicious, and forms a large part of the culture. Meet your chef and walk to a local market where the chef will introduce to you different kinds of herbals and fresh ingredients that will be used in Vietnamese Northern food.

Then you will go to the restaurant where you will prepare dishes under the guidance of experienced chefs at your workstation and each workshop will conclude with tasting the food you have prepared, accompanied by local beer or wine, in your comfortable dining area. All guests will receive detailed recipe cards and a certificate to take home at the end of the class. In the afternoon, you will visit the venerable Temple of Literature built in 1077 - Vietnam’s first university.

After the visit, return to the Old Quarter of Hanoi for a cyclo (trishaw) ride around the Old Streets which were named after the specific goods once offered for sale at these places. Stop at Hoan Kiem Lake, Ngoc Son temple to learn about the legend of the lake. Stop at art galleries, and handicraft shops for shopping. The evening is free time for fresh beer and other street foods that you can taste at walking streets in the old quarter of Hanoi. Overnight in Hanoi.

Hotel: four-star Palago Boutique Hotel - executive room
Meal: Breakfast or lunch

Day 3: Hanoi - Bai Tu Long Bay - overnight on boat

After breakfast, depart by road to Bai Tu Long Bay. Travel through the rich farmlands of the Delta of Red River and the landscape of rice fields, water buffalo, and the daily life of the Vietnamese village. Arrive at the pier by noon time and board your cruise. Lunch on board. The cruise passes by many rocks and islets in many funny shapes. The cruise may stop for a while to visit one of the best caves on the bay. Later on, the boat moves to the docking area for overnight. Dinner and overnight on a boat.

Boat cruise: four-star Signature Cruise - Junior suite cabin
Meal: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Shared local guide on the boat only

Day 4: Bai Tu Long Bay - Hanoi - Danang by flight - Hoi An

Greeting by the sunrise from the sea horizon, you can join a Tai Chi lesson for some morning exercise and watch the sunrise over the bay before breakfast. You will visit a beautiful limestone grotto, then head back to the boat for a final glimpse of Ha Long Bay while cruising back to the dock. Disembarking around 11:00 a.m., then your driver will transfer you back to Hanoi and to Noi Bai Airport where you will board a flight to Danang. Upon arrival, you are greeted by your driver and transferred to your hotel in Hoi An town. Overnight in Hoi An.

Hotel: four-star Delicacy Hotel - deluxe city-view room
Meal: Breakfast and lunch
Shared local guide on the boat only

Day 5: Hoi An - joined cooking class and street food

After breakfast, meet your guide and gather at the Hai Scout Café in Hoi An’s old streets to meet the chef. Visit a local market to buy the ingredients to be used in the cooking lesson later. Board a boat for a leisurely cruise along the Thu Bon River to the Red Bridge Cooking School. On arrival, explore the school’s herb and vegetable garden, before learning about some of Hoi An and Vietnam’s well-known dishes, which are a mix of Vietnamese and Chinese cuisines.

The cooking lesson lasts about two hours - each dish is first demonstrated by the Red Bridge’s chef before you prepare the same dish by yourself. The class also contains a brief introduction to Vietnamese food carvings (plate decoration). After the lesson, you sit down and taste what you have cooked. Then the boat or your car will take you back to Hoi An town. In the afternoon, take a guided walking tour around Hoi An Ancient Town.

Along the walk, you will have a chance to taste some local treats such as Hoi An sandwich at the well-known Madame Khanh or Madame Phuong, grilled pork and rice paper wraps and rolls, cao lau - Hoi An’s noodle grilled pork, noodle, salad, herbals and bean sprouts. Eat and taste as much as street food as you can. Overnight in Hoi An.

Hotel: four-star Delicacy Hotel - deluxe city view room
Meal: Breakfast and lunch

Day 6: Hoi An - free (breakfast)

A free day in Hoi An to do whatever takes your fancy.

Hotel: four-star Delicacy Hotel - deluxe city view room
Meal: Breakfast

Day 7: Hoi An - Ho Chi Minh City by flight

After breakfast, you will be free in Hoi An until board a flight to Ho Chi Minh City. Upon arrival, you are met by your driver and transferred to your hotel. Check-in at your hotel and be free at leisure. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

Hotel: four-star Northern Cham Hotel - premier city-view room
Meal: Breakfast

Day 8: Ho Chi Minh City - Joined cooking class and the city’s landmarks

Today, you will discover Southern Vietnamese cooking style. Meet your chef and visit a colorful market to approach to culinary aspect and the culture of Vietnamese gastronomy. You will explore Vietnamese ingredients and learn more about Vietnamese food and its spices. Then gather at your cooking center where the chef will introduce you to the dishes and the ingredients that will be used. Put an apron on, everybody would be busy putting their hands on cutting and chopping, preparing food for cooking.

Carving fruit or vegetables is also offered by the chef to amaze your dish with its beautiful presentation. Throughout the course, you have the opportunity to observe all the skills of the chef and the tricks that can achieve any recipe, even those that seem the most difficult. However, if only observe, it is not enough. The chef would like you to create it yourself, to repeat the same gestures. Finally, savor your creation.

Enjoy this moment to share your experience with the chef. In the afternoon, visit the Reunification Palace, the former residence of the Indochina Governor General and later President of the Republic of Southern Vietnam until the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975. Continue to visit the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Central Post Office, the Opera House, and the bustling Ben Thanh Market. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

Hotel: four-star Northern Cham Hotel - premier city-view room
Meal: Breakfast or lunch

Day 9: Ho Chi Minh City - Departure (Driver drop-off only)

Be free in Ho Chi Minh City until you are transferred to the airport for your departure flight.

Meal: Breakfast

Included excursions

Half-day cooking class in Hanoi
Half-day Hanoi city tour
Two days and one night overnight cruise in Bai Tu Long Bay
Half-day cooking class in Hoi An
Hoi An Street food tour
Half-day cooking class in Ho Chi Minh City
Half-day Ho Chi Minh City tour

Location

This tour will be held in Vietnam. The route will cover places such as Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Hội An, and Ho Chi Minh City.

Hoi An

Laying at the T-junction between Thu Bồn River and Cua Dai Beach, Hội An was an ancient rich port from the late 16th to early 19th centuries.

Ho Chi Minh City

Saigon is two hours by car to Vung Tau and Long Hai Beach, five hours by car to Phan Thiết, Mũi Né, and 50 minutes by flight to Nha Trang city, Côn Đảo or Phú Quốc Island.

Hanoi

Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam - the city for peace. There is so much to see there. Walking the old quarter and through the old city walls from Hoan Kiem Lake, Silver Street, Hang Ngan, Hang Dao, Dong Xuan Market, Hat Street, Bronze Street, etc. Strolling around Hoan Kiem Lake and across the brightly painted red The Huc bridge.

The atypical Ho Chi Minh Museum, and Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. One-Pillar Pagoda and Tran Quoc Pagoda for a taste of Buddhist culture. Hoa Lo prison for the Vietnamese view of the American-Vietnam war, there are many war sights, and it is a true experience to learn about that period from the Vietnamese’ perspective.

Ha Long Bay

The scenery is unique and relaxing, with thousands of small limestone karst outcroppings dotting the 1,500 square kilometers bay. Most of them are small and vertical which has kept humans from ever living there, and others are larger that have sustained fishing villages over the past 200 years. There are different ways to experience Ha Long Bay, and its neighboring Bai Tu Long Bay, and Lan Ha Bay. Both have the same beautiful experience, but Bai Tu Long Bay and Lan Ha Bay have fewer tourists and hide in more blue lagoons, untouched beaches, and caverns.

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Food

You will get eight breakfasts, five lunches, and one dinner in the best local restaurants or on the boat in Bai Tu Long Bay as well as bottled mineral water and wet wipes on the car during the tour included in the price. There will be joined cooking classes in Hanoi, Hội An, and Ho Chi Minh City. Street food with food is included in Hội An.

The following meals are included:

Breakfast
Drinks

The following drinks are included:

Water

The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:

Vegetarian
Vegan
Regular (typically includes meat and fish)
Pescatarian

If you have special dietary requirements it's a good idea to communicate it to the organiser when making a reservation

What's included

Boat cruises as specified in the program comply with current safety regulations
Cooking classes in Hanoi, Hoi An, and Ho Chi Minh City
8 nights accommodation
8 breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 1 dinner in the best local restaurants or on the boat in Bai Tu Long Bay
Bottle mineral water and wet wipe on the car during the tour
Travel in an appropriate private air-conditioned vehicle with an experienced safe driver
Travel from Hanoi to Lan Ha Bay and back by cruise shuttle bus
2 domestic flights (Hanoi - Danang - Ho Chi Minh City, including taxes and checked luggage)
Services of an experienced local English-speaking as mentioned in the program
Entry fees and permission to enter border areas for all visits mentioned in the program
VAT and other taxes

What's not included

International flights
Airport tax
Other meals
Drinks, gratuities, and personal expenses
Camera fees (if any)
Insurance

How to get there

Recommended Airports

HAN

Noi Bai International Airport

20 km

Transfer included

Airport: Noi Bai International Airport Airport transfer included: Noi Bai International Airport No additional charges. You can request this in the next step.

Cancellation Policy

A reservation requires a deposit of 14% of the total price.
The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
The rest of the payment should be paid on arrival.

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